Plunger-elevator.



No. 742,891. PATEN'IED NOV. 3, 1903. S. H. MOCARROLL. PLUNGER ELEVATOR.

APPLICATION-FILED JAN. 19, 1903.

N0 MODEL.

THE Norms Firms co., PHOTO-mmc.. wAsmNnruN. D. c4

UNITED STATES Patented November 3, 1903.

PATENT OFFICE.

PLUNGER-ELEVATOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 742,891, dated November 3, 1903. Application iiled January 19,1903. Serial No. 139,513. (No model.)

T0 @ZZ whom it may concern,.-

Be it known that I, SAMUEL I-I. MUGAR- ROLL, of Providence, in the county of Providence and State of Rhode Island, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Plunger-Elevators, of which the following is a specification.

This invention has relation to that type of elevators which are known as plunger-elevators and which, as their name implies, comprise a cylinder which is arranged in vertical positionand sunk below the bottom of the Well and a piston or plunger in said cylinder upon the top of which the car or cage is supported. In the installation of such elevators the cylinder is necessarily sunk for some distance into the earth. This is accomplished by means of suitable controlling mechanism, and relatively short lengths or portions of the cylinder are successively forced downward into the earth and connected together until the whole cylinder is completed. In the sinking of the wellfor the reception of the cylinder rocks, boulders, and other formations are necessarily encountered, and it frequently happens that the course of the well is more or less diverted laterally, so that when the cylinder is actually installed its median line is not exactly vertical, nor is it straight in many cases. The plunger must `of course be accurately formed and must be straight from end to end in order to properly perform its work, and consequently it is often the case that where the cylinder is laterally bent the lower end of the plunger is caused to rub and scrape against the interior wall of the cylinder and to eventually injure it and render it leaky and unfit for use. In some cases the scraping of the lower end of the plunger against the interior of the cylinder tends to wear away the lower end of the plunger and destroy its efficiency, causing a leakage through the stuffing-box at the upper end of the cylinder when the plunger is raised to carry the car to an upper floor.

The object of this invention is to obviate the difculties met with in the diverging of the cylinder laterally during its sinking or installation by providing the plunger with an antifriction device to bear against the interior wall of the cylinder and prevent the plunger from scraping or rubbing against the said wall and wearing away the contacting parts.

On the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents the upper end of a cylinder, a portion of a plunger, and an elevator-car supported thereon. The car is illustrated more or less conventionally. Fig. 2 represents a view of the lower end of the plunger. Fig. 3 represents an enlarged section on the -line 3 3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 represents another embodiment of the invention in which the plunger is equipped with a plurality of rolls. Fig. 5 represents a section on the line 5 5 of Fig. 4.

Referring to the drawings, 10 indicates generally an elevator-car, which is supported and braced upon the upper end of a plunger 11. This plunger is hollow, as ordinarily, and it projects through a stuffing-box and cylinder-head 12 into the cylinder 13. The cylinder is composed of relatively short lengths connected together, although but one length is shown. Leading into the upper end of the cylinder is the conduit 141, which supplies uid thereto. The passage of fluid through this conduit is controlled by a suitable valve mechanism, which may be actuated by controllers on the car; but as this invention does not relate to those devices they are not illustrated.

Into the lower end of the plunger is screwed or otherwise secured a plug 14. This plug is provided with rolls or small wheels, which may have a rolling contact with the interior wall of the cylinder. The plug may be bifurcated, as shown in Fig. 2, to provide two forks or arms 15 15 for the reception of shafts 16 16, on which the rolls or wheels are journaled. These shafts 16, as shown in Fig. 3, may be screwed in place and the ends subsequently upset, as indicated at 17. Each roll may consist of a hub or bushing 18, threaded at its ends to receive clamping-disks 19. Be'

tween the outer clam ping-disks may be mounted a composite antifriction device consisting of disks of brass and rawhide arranged alternately, all being secured together by screws 20, passed from one disk 19 to the other. The periphery of the roll thus formed is rounded or curved from end to end, so as to present a smooth surface which will conform to the curvature of the cylinder. It will be understood that while brass and rawhide are IOO preferably employed for the construction of the roll, yet other substances may be equally e well employed which will serve the purpose.

These two substances are specifically mentioned, as from experience it has been found that the metal serves to withstand any wear to which the rollers may be subjected, while the softer material serves to prevent injury to the interior of the cylinder or marring of same in any manner.

It is quite apparent that instead of-employing a single roll or pair of rolls the plug 14 may be provided with a plurality of diametrically-located rolls, such as shown in Figs. 4: and 5. In this instance there are eight rolls arranged in sets of four, one set being in a plane directly above the other set. The plug 14 is provided with radially-projecting angular lugs 2l for the shafts 22, on which the rolls 23 are journaled. Each roll may be similar to the one illustrated in Fig. 3 and heretofore described.

It is preferred that the rollsdo not completely fill the cylinder and that vthere Should be a loose lateral movement of the lower end of the plunger within the cylinder to allow for the lateral divergence of portions of the cylinder from the true or straight median line of the cylinder.

The advantage of the contrivance such as hereinbefore referred to and described need not be pointed out in detail, as it will be apparent to those skilled in the art to which this invention relates.

I am aware that it is old in the art to make noiseless gearing of alternate sections of rawhide and metal or similar substances and do not make claim to any such structure. I believe, however, that I am the rst to construct an antifriction-roll of alternate layers of rawhide and brass and provided with a smooth uninterrupted periphery, whereby the life of the roller is prolonged and the wearing-surfaces not injured. y

Having thus explained the nature ofthe invention and described a way of constructing and using the same, although without attempting to set forth all of the forms in which it may be made or all of the modes of its use, I declare that what I claim is- 1. In a plunger-elevator, the combination with a cylinder and a plunger working therein, of a plug removably secured in the lower end of said plunger, arms depending from said plug, shafts rigidly supported by said arms, and rollers mounted to revolve on said shafts and adapted to make `rolling contact with the interior wall of the cylinder.

2. In a plunger-elevator, the combination with a cylinder and a hollow plunger, of a plug removably secured in the lower end of said plunger and lhaving bearings, and composite antifriction devices formed with smooth uninterrupted peripheries and mounted upon said bearings and adapted to ,have rolling contact with the interior of the cylinder.

3. In a plunger-elevator, the combination with a cylinder and a plunger, of a plug removably secured in the lower end of said plunger, arms depending from said plug, shafts mounted in said arms, means for holding the same against rotation, and rollers mounted on said shafts and adapted to make rolling contact with the interior wall of said cylinder.

4. In a plunger-elevator, the combination with'a cylinder and a plunger, of a plug secured in the lower end of said plunger, shafts carried by said plug, bushings surrounding said shafts, and disks formed of alternatelyarranged metallic and non-metallic substances, secured to said bushings, whereby rollers are formed, said rollers having smooth uninterrupted peripheries adapted to have rolling contact with the inner wall of said cylinder.

5. In a plunger-elevator, the combination with a cylinder and a plunger, of a plug secured in the lower end of said plunger, radially-arranged angular lugs depending from said plug, and a plurality of antifriction-rollers mounted in said lugs and adapted to make rolling contact with the inner wall of said cylinder, the peripheries of said rollers being curved to conform .to the interior curvature of the cylinder.

In testimony whereof I have aiixed my signature in presence of two witnesses.

SAMUEL H. MGCARROLL.

Witnesses:

R. M. PIERsoN, FRED J OY. 

